-- THE ARCHIVE --

UNITED KINGDOM
School CP - February 1982

The Guardian, London, 26 February 1982

Parents win right to forbid school caning

The European Court of Human Rights ruled yesterday that Britain was wrong to allow corporal punishment in schools against the wishes of parents.

The six-to-one judgment in Strasbourg means that parents can, theoretically, forbid teachers to beat their children but it does not mean that such punishment will immediately be banned.

The ruling, legally binding on the Government, received a mixed reaction. Teachers' unions expressed concern, corporal punishment abolitionists are calling for a total ban and the Department of Education side-stepped any hasty commitment.

It is likely that this ruling will eventually lead to Britain joining the rest of Europe in banning the cane or strap. More than a third of the education authorities have already done so or intend to do so.

European Court of Human Rights ruling in Campbell & Cosans (Scottish tawse) case rejects the claim that belting is inhuman and degrading, but upholds parents' right to have individual objections to school CP honoured. Staged scenes of tawse landing on hand. A tawsemaker is shown at work. Scenes at court in Strasbourg. One of the Scottish mothers reads a statement welcoming the ruling.

Off-screen reporter (Michael Buerk) summarises the possible implications for UK schools. (Notice how he uncritically adopts the anti-CP activists' emotive language about "beating", despite the BBC's rule requiring a neutral or balanced point of view on controversial issues.) Reaction by unidentified school teachers' union spokesman.

HERE IS THE CLIP:

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The Times, London, 27 February 1982

Caned schoolgirl awarded £1,200

By Lucy Hodges

Click to enlarge

A girl, aged 14, who was beaten by her headmistress and as a
result developed weals on her buttocks of more than a foot long,
has been awarded £1,200 in a settlement reached by the European
Commission of Human Rights.

The report of the settlement between the girl's mother and the
British Government has not yet been made public but it reveals
that the Government is to send out a circular letter to education
authorities next week telling them that the use of corporal
punishment may in certain circumstances be contrary to Article 3
of the European Convention on Human Rights.

That article says that no one shall be subjected to torture or
to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The government
also agreed to pay the girl's mother more than £1,000 in legal
costs.

Mr Tom Scott, education secretary of Stopp, the Society of
Teachers Opposed to Physical Punishment, said last night that the
settlement was another blow to the Government from Strasbourg. On
Thursday the European Court of Human Rights found against the
United Kingdom in cases brought by two mothers in Scotland about
the use of the tawse.

"This is just another case that will surely bring home to
the Government that they have got to ban corporal punishment
because they will not get out of it so easily on future
occasions," he said.

There are a number of other complaints filed in Strasbourg in
which Scottish and English children have been beaten and where
parents allege a breach of Article 3. The reason why "a
friendly settlement" between the Government and the mother
has been reached is that the mother wanted to avoid publicity and
was afraid that if she went ahead to a hearing at the European
court she would lose her anonymity.

Mr Scott said the Government was lucky to "have got out
of this particular case with a friendly settlement". It was
significant that the United Kingdom had paid £1,200 for the
caning, he said. "It is going to cost the Government a
considerable amount if it has to pay out such a sum for every
caning."

The Department of Education and Science confirmed last night
that a settlement had been reached in this case and that the
mother had been paid at least £2,200. It is to issue the
circular to education authorities, together with a copy of the
commission's report on the friendly settlement.

The report of the settlement, reached on December 17,
concerned a girl at an English state secondary school. It is
understood that she was beaten for a fairly trivial misdemeanour.

She received a few strokes of the cane and a doctor found that
they had produced weals on the buttocks and hand. The girl was in
discomfort for days and traces of the caning remained for a
considerably longer period.

The mother and her daughter were represented by Mr Cecil
Thornberry, formerly a lecturer at the London School of Economics
who now works for the United Nations. European Commission
watchers are impressed at the scale of the damages awarded to the
girl which they say shows how seriously the commission regards
beating.